Raise the income threshold for officials whose income fluctuates and who are required to declare it to 1 billion VND.

VTV.vn - Officials whose assets or income fluctuate by 1 billion VND in a year must submit supplementary declarations, which will be used as a basis for verification if their explanations are deemed unreasonable.

On the afternoon of December 10th, with 442 out of 444 National Assembly delegates voting in favor, the National Assembly passed the Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Prevention and Combat of Corruption.

Before the National Assembly passed the bill, the Inspector General of the Government , Doan Hong Phong, presented a report on the acceptance, explanation, and revision of the draft law.

Regarding the value of assets and income that must be declared and supplemented, Mr. Phong stated that the regulation increasing the declared value from 50 million VND to 150 million VND and the value of assets and supplementary income that fluctuate during the year from 300 million VND to 1 billion VND is based on two main factors.

Firstly, there have been three salary increases since 2018; secondly, this is due to the nearly threefold increase in socio -economic development, especially the significant price fluctuations in the market compared to 2018.

According to Mr. Phong, the value of assets and income that must be declared starts from 150 million VND and applies to 3 declaration methods (initial declaration, annual declaration, and for personnel purposes), while the value of assets and income fluctuating up to 1 billion VND/year only applies to supplementary declarations, monitoring changes, and as a basis for verification when explanations are unreasonable.

Therefore, the provisions in Articles 35, 40, and 41 are consistent and in line with the objective of controlling fluctuations in assets and income of significant value.

The National Assembly passed the Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Prevention and Combat of Corruption.

Regarding "digital assets," current legislation lacks comprehensive regulations, so they are not included in the draft Law. The Government has assigned the Government Inspectorate, in coordination with the Ministry of Finance and relevant agencies, to continue researching and proposing regulations when sufficient legal grounds exist, and to comprehensively amend the Law on Prevention and Combat of Corruption.

The concept of "total income between two declarations" remains as in the current law and will be specifically guided by the Decree.

Assets owned by the declarant, their spouse, and minor children (including land use rights, houses and assets attached to the land, or jointly owned) must all be declared; the list of assets and the forms will be specified in detail by the Government in a Decree guiding the implementation of the Law.

Regarding the subjects required to declare assets and income annually, there were suggestions to add Deputy Directors of Departments and clarify the criteria for determining the title "equivalent to Director of Department," especially for leadership positions at the commune level; and to clarify the agency responsible for regulating and controlling equivalent subjects.

Regarding this matter, Mr. Phong stated that the annual declaration requirement at the local level only applies to Directors of Departments and equivalent positions, as it is a continuation of the current law and ensures compliance with Decision 56 (position allowance of 0.9 or higher).

Equivalent positions are defined according to the Law on Organization of Local Government (such as Chief Inspector of the province, Chief of the Provincial People's Committee Office, etc.).

Commune-level leadership positions are subject to declaration through various methods (initial declaration, supplementary declaration, declaration for personnel purposes) and are subject to oversight according to Party regulations and laws, based on the position of the person making the declaration.

Government Inspector General Doan Hong Phong

Regarding the public disclosure of asset and income declarations, Mr. Phong stated that information about assets and income relates to the privacy and personal rights of the declarant. Therefore, publicly disclosing information about the assets and income of the declarant on the National Electronic Information Portal and through mass media is inconsistent with the provisions of the Constitution and civil law.

Therefore, current anti-corruption laws only stipulate that disclosure should be carried out through certain methods to ensure transparency within agencies, organizations, and units, while also ensuring that information about the assets and income of officials and those in positions of power is not used for negative purposes such as disseminating, quoting, or spreading false information that affects the honor and reputation of the declarants.

Regarding the handling and recovery of assets related to corruption, the Inspector General of the Government, Doan Hong Phong, stated that the handling of assets obtained through corruption is regulated in Article 93 of the Law on Prevention and Combat of Corruption.

Accordingly, assets obtained through corruption must be recovered and returned to their rightful owners or managers, or confiscated in accordance with the law (Clause 1); damages caused by acts of corruption must be rectified; and those who commit acts of corruption causing damage must compensate in accordance with the law (Clause 2).

"With this regulation, the recovery of assets derived from corruption can be carried out without relying on criminal prosecution, while still ensuring fairness and reasonableness in accordance with the law," Mr. Phong stated.

Furthermore, the investigation and prosecution of corruption crimes and the recovery of assets in corruption cases, including assets of those involved, are carried out according to the provisions of the law on criminal procedure, and therefore are not further regulated in this Law.

Source: https://vtv.vn/nang-muc-thu-nhap-cua-can-bo-bien-dong-phai-ke-khai-len-1-ty-dong-100251210153120454.htm